Crime, abortion rights driving voters to the polls
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The countdown to the midterms is on. With just days until the November 8th election, early voting is already underway, and as of Wednesday, more than 27 million ballots have already been cast nationwide. Voters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania's largest county, named abortion rights, crime and the integrity of elections among issues that are driving them to the polls.
"Character [is] number one," said one voter. "And number two, integrity for elections and abortion rights really bothering me a lot."
"A lot of young ladies that are going to be growing up for the future to come, a lot of their rights are being taken away in terms of autonomy over their body," another voter said.
"Crime, definitely," said Taina Fields. "It affects our neighborhood, it affects our youth especially, growing up in a very toxic environment."
In a recent CBS News Battleground Tracker poll, eight in 10 likely voters described things in the country today as "out of control," as opposed to "under control."
"Everything's a big issue these days," said Philadelphia voter Tighe Burns. "The economy, inflation, it's impacting people's wallets for sure, and their cost of living. Abortion rights is certainly on the line in this election."
Pennsylvanians have seen a flurry of ads from candidates in highly watched races: the John Fetterman-Mehmet Oz battle for a Senate seat, and the Doug Mastriano-Josh Shapiro faceoff for governor.
But even that hasn't been enough to sway some voters one way or the other.
"I don't like any of them," said Kim, a voter who only gave their first name. "I don't know who I'm going to vote for. I don't like the Republicans, I don't like the Democrats."
For more information on voting and making a plan to vote, check out our Voter Guide here.
